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4 Websites I Use in Class Daily

My students seem to love it when the electricity goes out at our school. I guess it is kind of an adventure to them. I, however, would rather go see the dentist for a root canal. Okay, I will admit it, I am one of those teachers who freaks out when the electricity goes off at school. Technology has become such an integral part of my classroom makeup that I struggle without it. My lesson plans, my classroom management system, my morning work, and even my inside recess activities are all web-based. Which sites would I miss the most? These are the websites that I use every single day!

Still writing lesson plans out longhand? Boo! Try Planbook.com. I have used it for a couple of years now and love it. It is easy to learn and use. They have great video tutorials, and their help staff is awesome. You can organize your lessons in units, attach worksheets and PowerPoints right to the plans, and pick the standards you are teaching with a click. The website even gives you the ability to share plans with the teachers you work with and with your students. I love the ability to import and update my plans from last year! This website is a MUST have for me!

One website that has revolutionized my classroom management is Classdojo.com. I can't say enough positive things about this site! My students, parents, and I all love it. The teacher is able to reward students with points based on targeted student behaviors. The site keeps track of each behavior and teachers can customize the behaviors to their own needs-there are Positive behaviors and Needs Work behaviors. It is not only a classroom management system, but it is a fabulous parent communication platform. Parents can get real-time updates on their ClassDojo phone app about their students' behavior. You can also send messages to the whole class or to individual parents. The new Class Story feature is making it super easy to keep your classroom transparent and open by letting you post pictures of your activities. I pull this site up and have it displayed on my SMARTboard before the students even walk through the door. Oh, and if the electricity goes out, my phone has the app!

Once my students walk in the door and tap in for attendance on ClassDojo, they head for the computers. Part of our morning routine and part of the students' morning work is signing into Xtramath.org.Xtramath is a wonderful way to improve basic math fact knowledge and fluency. The site gives students practice on their individual level. Students review the facts that they have missed or taken too much time to answer. Students are given certificates when they are fluent on their facts. I love that I can change which facts I want my students working on such as moving them from subtraction to multiplication. The site is set up so that when a student finishes, they tell the next student it is his/her turn. LOVE!

My schedule this year has all my breaks in the morning. We are in the classroom from 12:00 until 3:00. This makes for a very, very long afternoon for my 3rd graders. Around 1:30 or 2:00, my students are finished, done, ready to gooooo. What to do? GoNoodle of course! GoNoodle.com comes to my rescue everyday. This site gets the students up and MOVING! We dance and stretch and, most importantly, have fun. The site is full of fun and energetic videos that are designed to get your students active and get their brains back on learning. Videos last from 1 minute to indoor recess videos of 15 minutes. My kiddos are addicted! I go home singing the songs and humming the tunes. So far this year Kitty High Five is their favorite. I have given away ALL of my indoor recess toys!